E-Gates Expedites Entry To Country

3 January 2019


The introduction of Electronic Gates (e-gates) at NAIA in October has paved the way in the drastic reduction of queues for border control of arriving Filipinos at the country's premier airport.

Called “Fast Travel” program, it was introduced by the International Air Transport Association to simplify and improve the clearing processes. It is also used in pinpointing citizens under the watch list and or persons of interest in immigration formalities.

E-gates are normally found at developed countries around the world. It was introduced to the Philippines three months ago and became an instant hit to arriving Filipinos particularly during peak hours where queue is normally longer.

Twenty Three e-gates are commissioned by the Philippine government to be installed at major and busy international airports across the country with a price tag of P328,869,000.

There were 13 e-gate machines installed in NAIA (5 at NAIA 1, 3 at NAIA 2, and 5 at NAIA 3), while Mactan-Cebu got five machines. Soon, Clark will have five e-gates installed, and another three e-gates will be installed in Davao in 2019.

Another set of e-gates machines are already ordered for installation in Kalibo, Iloilo, and Bacolod, while another set is earmarked for Puerto Princesa, Tagbilaran, and Zamboanga.

Immigration Commissioner Jamie Morente said that e-gates have shortened the processing time of Filipino travelers holding machine readable passports to only 8 to 15 seconds per passengers from the previous 45-60 seconds.

E-gates for Philippine Passport at NAIA T3 already cut queues by 50-70% during rush hour, according to Port Operations Division Chief Grifton Medina.

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